Hi all,

This week's change log:


Feel free to reply to this topic if you'd like to comment on the
changes. Or better yet, if you expect a lot of discussion start a new
topic (or rejoin an existing one) about a specific change.

NEW: Seperate Footers group setting, places the footer in a seperate
mime chunk, needed to support PGP signatures.

A new one on me, I didn't see any word about it in beta.

I can guess that this might make it possible for members to sign their messages and not have the appended footer invalidate the signature.


Comments about these others are also welcome:

BUGFIX: Special/HTML characters in event names/descriptions were not
handled correctly in the generated ICS files.
NEW: 'Allow group members to download the message archives' setting.
CHANGE: When following a thread, insert standard message footers when
we send out the initial messages.
BUGFIX: Footers for messages sent because we're following a thread now
have the unfollow link.
BUGFIX: Wiki TOC links were broken if they contained special
characters like parentheses.
CHANGE: Slight tweaks to html footers and full digests.

Please call out any you find significant.

Shal


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Patty,

Thanks, Shal, didn't realize the Wiki pages were public.

That's a group option, in the Features section of the Settings page. The Wiki is one of the few features that can be made visible to the public. I think the Calendar is the only other.

Hoping Mark will bring that feature back, and allow list mods to make
the comment a mandatory field (simple check box in the Settings).

"Back" is kind of an odd word, because the feature has never existed in Groups.io, but I know what you mean: it was a feature you liked about Y!Groups and you want it "back".

There's a wish-list item for it, and a lot of discussion over the years in the beta group. I think the form Mark is thinking about is a special database table (moderators only access) where the "Apply For Membership In This Group" button brings up a page that includes the set of entry boxes to fill in the equivalent of an "Add Row" to that database.

This way the group moderators would have complete control over what type of information to request and how it is described just by configuring the table to have the columns they want. The database table would then contain a record of all the membership requests.

Shal


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Michael,

A Comment field in the Membership application with instructions that I
can set on the Comment Field would be best.

There's a wish-list item for that.


What we have now is the Member Notice for Pending Subscription, which Victoria mentioned as a second step:
/static/help#member-notices

Shal


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Pablo,

... about 2 weeks a go got a message from one user that can't post
messages. The user was OK until then and no changes were made on the
group. I reset his subscription, with the same privileges of the
other users but keeps getting bouncing messages.

I think Bruce is probably right that the member is sending from the wrong address.

One thing the member can do is look at the footer of a recent message from the group - as of last week they contain the subscribed email address after the Unsubscribe link. That's the address the member normally must send from (absent the use of an Alias posting address).

You may be able to confirm that the member used the wrong address by looking at the Message Activity tab in your group's Activity log. Select "Non-subscriber message" in the Actions box and click the Search button. If there are entries during the time frame the member attempted to post, see if you can match up any of the addresses with that member.

As a second check, put the member's subscription address in the Search box, select "All actions", click Search and see if there are any other bounce causes listed during the time frame where the member could not post.

Shal


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Patty,

One of our list members has asked why, in the Digest, the messages
that are replies to previous messages do not have the previous message
below the reply?

The intent is to prevent the build-up of trailing quotes. In groups where members don't habitually trim the trailing quotes you can have the opposite problem: those quotes can stack up under each message making the digest very repetitive and hard to follow.

When the feature was first implemented I suggested that the software might try to preserve one trailing quote, but auto-trim the rest. I don't know if the suggestion was considered unnecessary or even undesirable, or perhaps too difficult to implement reliably, but whatever the case it was not taken up.

Shal


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I'm sorry if this may have been asked and answered, I tried searching several times, but couldn't find the answer:? One of our list members has asked why, in the Digest, the messages that are replies to previous messages do not have the previous message below the reply?? She commented that it can be hard to follow the thread without that previous message copied below the reply.? Is there a logic behind this?? I know you can click on "View/Reply Online" to be taken to that message thread on the list.? But, you wouldn't want to do that a bunch of times with various messages in a digest, just to get sort of "sync'ed" back into the message thread.
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Patty S.

On Sat, Jun 16, 2018 at 10:14 am, Pablo wrote:

I? reset his subscription, with the same privileges of the other users but keeps getting bouncing messages.

He's probably posting from the wrong email account. Check his user record again and be sure to tell him which email address to use.

If he wants to post from more than one email address he will have to set up one of them as an alias. Have him click on his name at upper right and select Account. Then pull down the "Advanced Settings for Email Aliases" menu near the bottom of the resulting page. Here he can add a second address. Note that this will be an alternate, send-only email address...all group messages will still be received at the primary address.

Hope this helps,
Bruce?
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A Comment field in the Membership application with instructions that I can set on the Comment Field would be best.

I tell and send written instructions that say:
NO APPROVALS WITHOUT YOUR FIRST AND LAST NAME IN THE COMMENT BOX
but what I usually get is nothing or the story why the unnamed person wants to join.

Bruce,? (revisited this from another post)
"downloadable file" depends in large part what the web server sends the browser.? ?In the discussion that follows, this is what happens on Groups.io.
When you click on a PDF file, the server sends a response containing "Content-Type: application/pdf" - if you have a plug in in the browser registered that says "I know what to do with a PDF file, let me handle it", the browser hands it off to the PDF viewer.
When you click on a DOC file, the server sends "Content-Disposition: attachment; Content-Type: application/msword" and as I have no plugin to view "msword", the browser brings up the "Save As..." dialog to save the attachment.
When you click the Export database button though, the server sends a standard html page with "Content-Type: text/plain" - the browser does not receive anything that it could interpret as a "file", only text to be displayed.? So the onus is on the user to take that text and massage it into some other format such as a document, spreadsheet, whatever.? Fortunately the text is in CSV format so turning that raw text into a structured file is pretty straightforward.
My then is to enhance the Export function to generate and send an actual "file" rather than display the text in a browser window (which becomes cumbersome or even impossible on large databases).
Thanks
Toby

Hello.
?I have a small group for PBEM wargaming, the groups has worked fine but about 2 weeks a go got a message from one user that can't post messages.? The user was OK until then and no changes were made on the group.? I? reset his subscription, with the same privileges of the other users but keeps getting bouncing messages.
Please help.
Thanks
Pablo

开云体育

On Sat, Jun 16, 2018 at 07:49 am, Patty Sliney wrote:

The only thing I miss is a the Comment field in the Membership application.

Are you making use of the Pending Membership message? (This has been raised in another topic recently.) If you set one up then prospective members can be invited to reply with "reasons why they wish to join the Group", but it only works with groups that are restricted, where moderators have to approve each applicant.

It also seems to be a good way of sorting out the "real" applicants from the possibly bogus ones; at a rough guess on the group I moderate only 50% of applications trigger a response to the Pending Subsciption message; the other 50% finish up either being deleted manually or by simply timing out.

Chris

Thanks, Shal, didn't realize the Wiki pages were public.? A new feature I'm still learning a little bit about.? So many nice, neat new things on Groups.IO.? The only thing I miss is a the Comment field in the Membership application.? We used that very heavily for several reasons.? Hoping Mark will bring that feature back, and allow list mods to make the comment a mandatory field (simple check box in the Settings).

Patty Sliney

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Patty S.

On Fri, Jun 15, 2018 at 05:42 pm, Carol B. wrote:

And how can we confirm that the albums are not for email attachments only?

There is only one album for those and it's always named Emailed Photos.? It will also always be the first album on the Photos page, if it exists, followed by any others in alphabetical order.? On my groups where attachments aren't allowed, it doesn't exist.

Duane
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Very interesting that the description box shows up for some of us and not others.? I am using Google chrome on my laptop when doing this.? I guess maybe it is the browser that is giving me the option and not Groups.io?
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Yvette in Ontario

Thank you, Duane.

That is a very easy, if repetitive, solution.? I appreciate the help.

Carol B.

On Fri, Jun 15, 2018 at 04:44 pm, Carol B. wrote:

My member was able to create an album and add a photo to it, but not to open an existing album and add a photo.

I believe that's the problem.? If I remember right, the albums that get transferred are 'locked' so that only the owner (or moderators) can upload photos to it.? On the one(s) where you have permission, go to each album and click on Edit Album.? There will be two radio buttons available below the Description box, one for Group Access and one for Personal Access.? When they're set for Personal Access, only the album creator and moderators can upload new photos to it.? If you want everyone in the group to be able to add to any album, change each one to Group Access, then click the Update button.

Duane
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Shal,

I didn't notice the name of the album I was opening, sorry.? I was just trying to check what happens in an album in a group for which I am not a moderator or owner.? Now I know why there was no Add Photos button there.? :)? Since I attached my picture to an email, it is now included in that album.? I thought of adding it to a new album but since there was a reason for no Add Photo button, it wouldn't illustrate an actual problem.

The albums in my groups must not be set up as email only since I do see the Add Photos buttons when I open them.? Nevertheless, members are not seeing the button.? The one member mentioned that specifically and a few others are saying they don't know how to add pictures.? Our groups use a system of monthly albums rather than albums for individual albums, so most won't try to create new albums to get around the problem.

I already know it's possible to add photos to a self-created album, but how do we let our members add to already existing albums if there is no Add Photos button?? And how can we confirm that the albums are not for email attachments only?? I see nothing in the photos section of Admin settings.? I will ask my group member to take a screen shot showing the lack of the button.

Carol B.